By Teresa Mariani

San Luis Obispo is a kid-friendly kind of town. What else could you expect in a city where one of the most famous landmarks is Bubblegum Alley?

It runs between a city parking lot and Higuera Street, on the block between Chorro and Broad streets, in case you and your brood would like to take a look - or add some gum. Though it’s a sure favorite with kids, most of the gum on the walls actually comes from students at Cal Poly State University, just across town.

And thanks to Cal Poly, plus the nearby beach and an ample supply of surfers (both student and non-student, ranging in age from 10 to 60) dining around San Luis Obispo is a pretty relaxing affair. Shorts, sandals and sweatshirts are the norm in just about every restaurant - along with whatever else the college kids are wearing this year.

Sure, San Luis Obispo has plenty of first-rate gourmet white-linen-tablecloths-get-a-babysitter-bistros: Café Roma, 1020 Railroad Avenue, 541-6800, and Ristorante Benvenuti, 450 Marsh St., 541-5393, come immediately to mind.

But SLO - local speak for “San Luis Obispo” - has plenty of restaurants where the waiters bring crayons to the table along with kids' menus. Places where your kids can be kids, and you won’t get thrown out of the restaurant, whether they’re 2, 12, or 22.

Yes, San Luis Obispo does have the usual fast-food restaurants, but they’re concentrated on Madonna Road, near the shopping malls, or Foothill Boulevard, between the Cal Poly campus and student rental territory.

But if you’re looking for a nice, non-fast food spot, here’s a round up of places to eat with your kids when you’re out enjoying SLO Town. Most offer speedy to speedy enough for kids service, a children’s menu; all offer great meals for between $3 and $15 per person, or mostly somewhere in between:

Farmer’s Market - No, it’s not a restaurant. It’s kind of a once-a-week street faire in downtown San Luis Obispo. The city closes six blocks of Higuera Street to auto traffic between Osos and Broad streets, from 6-9 p.m. In addition to some farm-fresh produce (depending on the season, anything from ruby-red strawberries to winter squash) you can also get a great dinner.

That’s because plenty of downtown restaurants set up grills right on the street, serving up barbecue ribs, chicken, pizza, tamales, calzones, cookies - even caramel apples. Our family favorites include the Veggie Calzones at the Buona Tavola stand (near Osos Street), and tri-tip sandwiches from either the Old Country Deli grill (by Nipomo Street) or McLintock’s grill (in front of McLintock’s, by Broad Street). Families can grab some grub and sit on the sidewalk and eat, then stroll and listen to a band or take in a kid-themed puppet show. Farmer’s Market is held year-round every Thursday except Thanksgiving (or Christmas Day). Rain (real rain, not mist) cancels, though.

Margie’s Diner, 1575 Calle Joaquin, 541-2940 (next door to the San Luis Obispo Rose Garden Inn). Margie’s serves real food for real people: burgers, fries, shakes, pies, turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, waffles, pancakes, chicken-fried stakes - you name it; it’s there. Warning: the servings are huge. But the prices are more than reasonable, and kids - even little ones - will fit right in to the busy “diner” atmosphere. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Cool Cat Café, 3165 Broad St., 544-8235. (Take Broad Street east from downtown to the Crossroads Center at Broad and Orcutt). Cool Cat’s is a great restaurant, any way you slice it. It’s a locally owned place with a 1950s/60s theme from the décor down to the menu and even the Jukebox. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner (closed Sundays). Cool Cat has just about the best milkshakes in town, great burgers, and daily specials. You’ll love the jukebox; the kids will love the pinball machines.

Cisco’s, 778 Higuera, 543-5555. Cisco’s is the lunch spot for college kids, families and kids, and former college kids. It’s a sandwich place in The Network, a collection of shops on Higuera Street. Cisco’s is in the back; get in line and order your lunch, watch them make it, and then head outside to the brick patio overlooking San Luis Creek and Mission Plaza to eat it. Cisco’s has live music on the patio most days of the week for lunches. “Lunch” is an elastic term here; it stretches from about 11 a.m. to 3 or 4 p.m. The food is great too: sandwiches made to order and piled high (try the curry chicken salad on San Luis Sourdough) and great salads (try the ‘Mini Chef’ which isn’t very mini at all). Cisco’s also offers a kid’s menu, with kid sized sandwiches and drinks.

The Bagel Basement, 673 Higuera, 544-5785. Owned by a couple of local Cal Poly grads, it has the best bagels in town. Open for breakfast, lunch and a late-afternoon snack. All kinds of bagels, bagel sandwiches, deli sandwiches, pizza bagels, cookies, scones, muffins and more. A great place to lunch with kids (get them a bagel and cream cheese or a pizza bagel and some juice). The most dangerous part? It’s across the street from Tom’s Toys, another local treasure.

Nucci’s, 3165 Broad, 595-9444. Next to Cool Cat Café. Take Broad Street east from downtown to the Crossroads Center at Broad and Orcutt. Nucci’s has great salads - some of the best around. The breadsticks alone are worth going there for. It’s open for lunch and dinner and usually crowded at lunch. But tables clear quickly, and there are outdoor tables - perfect for kids who want to move around the patio and swoop into the table for a bite. Great pizzas, pastas, and salads too. Try the turkey focaccia sandwich and salad combo for lunch and get the kids an order of breadsticks with marinara sauce for dipping. If they’re good get them Nucci’s homemade lemon bars or brownies afterwards (or get them for you).

Sakura Rikyu, 11560 Los Osos Valley Road, 541-2754. It’s in the Laguna Village Shopping Center at Los Osos Valley Road and Madonna Road (just west of the San Luis Obispo Rose Garden Inn and Margie’s). Prices are a little more expensive here, and your kids may think Japanese food is a little too exotic at first. But then they’ll discover Japanese food is really fun, especially if you sit at one of the two grill-tables, where the chefs wheel up carts of ingredients, fire up the grill, and cook everything right there in front of you - tossing knives and lemons around as you go. The kids can get the chicken teriyaki and they’ll love it. Definitely worth a splurge; call for reservations of seats at the special tables.

Golden China Restaurant, 1085 Higuera St., 543-7354. Golden China is usually packed with families and students. Order one of the family style meals, and get your choice of soup, one entrée per person, plus steamed or fried rice, egg rolls, fried won-tons, tea, sliced oranges, almond cookies and of course fortune cookies. Our family likes to order almond or cashew chicken, sweet and sour pork, Mongolian beef, chicken chow mein or egg foo yung. You really can’t go wrong here.

And remember, if all else fails while you’re sightseeing in SLO Town on a sunny day, grab a sandwich or some frozen yogurt and take the kids to Mission Plaza. They can run around and pitch pennies in the bear sculpture fountain near Monterey Street while you sit and eat and relax. Locals call that “The SLO Life.”

Teresa Mariani is a freelance writer and mother of two based in San Luis Obispo.

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